Rare papal honour conferred on former PA/secretary

Cardinal John Dew presented her with the honour at a Mass at the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Wellington on July 20.

She is a Dame of the Order of St Gregory of the Great.

She provided administrative support in the Archdiocese of Suva until 1979. In 1983 she took up the role of providing secretarial support to the rector at the Pacific Regional Seminary. On moving to New Zealand – for more than 34 years – she provided secretarial and PA support to the Archbishops of Wellington in the Archdiocese’s offices, including for Cardinal Dew.

The Order of Saint Gregory the Great was founded by Pope Gregory XVI on September 1, 1831. It is named for Pope Saint Gregory I, otherwise known as Gregory the Great.

Since 1994, women have been admitted to the Order as Dames in the same grades and divisions as men who are made knights of the Order.

There is no set method of nomination for this Order.

Awards of the Order of Saint Gregory the Great are typically made on the recommendation of diocesan bishops or archbishops or nuncios for special merit or service. If it is processed through the local bishop, then the usual procedure is for that bishop to nominate the candidate through the appropriate apostolic nuncio, who then forwards the recommendation to the cardinal secretary of state in Rome.

Upon approval, a diploma is issued in Latin (with the candidate’s forenames also translated into Latin where possible), and it is signed in almost every case on behalf of the Roman Pontiff by the secretary of state of the Vatican.

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Papal Dame presentation at Wellington cathedral (Archdiocese of Wellington/Facebook)

Papal knights Order of St Gregory the Great (Papal Knights)